Forest Service Seeking Committee Members to Advise on Recreation Site Fees

Release Date: Dec 4, 2017

Milwaukee, WI – The U.S. Forest Service is seeking volunteer committee members to advise the agency on recreation fee changes at national forest sites throughout the northeastern United States. Vacancies exist for four current positions and four “back-up” replacement positions on the Eastern Region Recreation Resource Advisory Committee. Committee members provide recommendations on new or changing recreation site fees for national forests and grasslands in 13 northeastern states. Committee members receive travel and per diem expenses for regularly scheduled meetings, but do not receive pay or other compensation.

Nominated committee members must represent one of the following interests:

Winter Motorized Recreation

Summer Non-Motorized Recreation

Winter Non-Motorized Recreation

Local Environmental Groups

American Indian tribes

Members will be appointed for three-year terms based on the following criteria:

Qualifications to represent the desired interest group

Rationale for committee service and desired contributions

Experience working successfully as part of a collaborative group

Nominees’ demonstrated ability to represent minorities, women and persons with disabilities will also be considered in membership selections. U.S. Department of Agriculture policies regarding equal opportunity will be followed.

The committee’s jurisdiction includes national forests in Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Recreation use fees have been in place for many years and are charged at many recreation sites such as campgrounds, trailheads, day-use areas and boat ramps. Ninety-five percent of fees collected at these sites are returned to the local national forest or grassland to maintain and enhance the recreation sites.

Interested individuals must complete an application and provide background information supporting their qualifications to represent at least one of the identified interest groups. Applications are available here.

Completed applications are due by February 1, 2018 and must be mailed to: USFS Region 9- Recreation RAC Nomination Attn: Jennifer Wright, 231 North Main Street, Rutland, VT 05701.

For more information, visit www.fs.usda.gov/main/r9/recreation/racs, or contact Joanna Wilson at 801-423-7724, jwilson08@fs.fed.us.The U.S. Forest Service is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a mission of sustaining the health, diversity and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The Forest Service’s Eastern Region includes 20 states in the Midwest and East, stretching from Maine, to Maryland, to Missouri, to Minnesota. There are 17 national forests and one national tallgrass prairie in the Eastern Region. For more information, visit www.fs.usda.gov/r9.

The U.S. Forest Service manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the Forest Service manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the nation’s clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year. The agency has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 80 percent of the 850 million forested acres within the U.S., of which 100 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live. For more information, visit www.fs.fed.us.